Sweets & Cigarettes
by DollableNana
Summary: Eren Jäger is the 18 years old inheritor of the small bakery/confectionery "Jägers Ofen" which is currently run by his single mother Carla Jäger. One day, on the way home, he meets a young stranger who appears to be a common derelict until he tries to sell Eren some drugs.


_Grüner Weg_ - that was the coincidentally aesthetic name of the street where the small homely-like bakery _Jägers Ofen _was located. The fragrance of freshly baked buns and melted chocolate was filling the passersby's noses, luring them with mouth-watering sweets and cakes presented in the showcase. The majority of people in Germany loved allowing themselves a piece of cake and a hot cup of coffee after work or school. That was one of the reasons why this small bakery was deeply admired by students and teachers from that neighbourhood.

The watch on Eren's wrist hitting exactly 18:00 made him groan with relief and abandon the plate he was halfheartedly scrubbing. "Mom." The young boy sneaked behind the pale woman who was concentrating on cutting some fruit, leaning over her fragile shoulder. "It's 18:00 o'clock now, can I finally go out?!" He pulled a long face, his eyes begging for compassion.

"Are you really going to be so petty, son?" The woman asked rhetorically, not expecting any decent answer from the teenager.

"It's not fair, mom." Eren leaned against the table, forcing his mother to face his ever so pitiful visage. "I go to school from 08:00 o'clock to 14:00 o'clock, you force me to help you out from 14:00 o'clock to 18:00 o'clock - if I'm lucky that is! The other kids from my scho—"

"Fine,fine." She interrupted her son's whining with a sigh. "Let's make a deal." She put away the knife, supporting her exhausted body against the edge of the table. "You may go play outside after you get me some stuff from Mr. Ackerman." She finally looked at the boy, gently pulling his cheek.

Eren made a sullen face, not being satisfied with her suggestion. "I'm not a baby, stop doing that!" He raised his voice, scratching his cheek. "And don't call it 'play outside', oh my god." He hissed, sulkily turning his head away.

"Fine, fine, Mr. Grown of the Ups family. Would you be so kind to get me the packets of eggs and deep-frozen fruits from Mr. Ackerman's house? I asked him to do me the favor and receive the products because I was not at home today. And would you be so kind to excuse my unacceptable behavior?" A deep sigh escaped her lips. "Better?"

"You are making fun of me, you can do better." He responded cheekily, crossing his arms.

"Go get the products, now!" The annoyed mother screetched, slapping Eren's bumcheeks with the first object sighted - a newspaper.

Eren quickly flinched, the smack causing him to let a squeak escape his lips. "I-I'm going, ma! Leave it to me!"

He rushed outside with alarming speed, wanting to escape his mother's frightening vein. The woman was left behind with a worried face, a loud 'Don't overact!' echoed from the shop. Eren scratched his sweaty neck with a sigh, tardily pacing towards the said place. The sun was gradually setting, causing the sky to develop a blushing color. The Ackerman family's place was just a few houses away from the bakery which was also Eren's second home. He spent most of the time there because he was pretty much forced into helping out. Eren suddenly remembered his 10-years-old-self and his father who had started going on business trips - almost never being at home. That was one of the main reasons why his parents divorced 8 years ago. Eren would never forget the hard time he had had after moving with his lone mother to their current town. But he was the kind of a guy who always tried to change negative thoughts into positive ones - that's how he was able to switch the remembrance with the vision of his best friends Armin and Mikasa.

Absorbed in thought, Eren found himself standing infront of a classy, rose-painted house. A small front garden was blooming with umpteen species of plants and flowers. Eren inhaled deeply, allowing the fragrance infuse his sense. He spotted the curtains of the lower right window split, a girl with long, black hair staring at him with a satisfied expression on her face. She clearly spelled 'Come' with her lips, pointing at the front door with slim fingers. Luckily Eren was able to lip-read and quickly headed towards the suggested door. The girl disappeared from the window, dashing towards the entrance to welcome her friend. Eren unconsciously tapped with his right foot, waiting to be let inside.

After a few seconds, the door was opened and the said girl welcomed him with a weak smile. "Eren. I baked cookies." She remarked immedietely, hoping for a positive reaction.

"Huh? Cookies?" Eren slowly shook his head, giving her a disgusted look. "I can't taste anything sweet for the next 5 years, Mikasa. You know that."

"I see…" Mikasa lowered her head, the disappointment in her eyes crystal clear.

"Yeah. May I come in, or?" He tilted his head to the side, peeking inside the house.

Mikasa subsequently cleared the way for Eren, closing the door after him. Eren always made himself at home when visiting Mikasa and the reason was probably because she was repeating the words 'Make yourself at home.' at least 5 times per visit ever since they met.

Walking across the living room, he searched for Mikasa's father. "Is your dad at home?" He turned his head around facing the girl who followed his steps.

"Not yet. Do you need something from him?" She asked, being slightly disappointed by the fact her friend wasn't visiting her, but her father.

"Yeah, mom sent me here to receive the deep-frozen fruits and the eggs."

"…" Mikasa instantly turned her head in the opposite direction. "E-eggs? Fruits?"

"Yeah, eggs and fruits. Where are they?" He repeated with a slightly annoyed tone.

"Eren." She looked up, the expression on her face deadly serious. "I'm going to shoulder the blame." She nodded and walked a few steps closer to the other.

"Ah?" He wimped out, being slightly terrified by her sudden behavior. "What are you talking about?"

"I used the eggs and the fruits for the cookies." She raised her voice, unaskedly taking Eren's hand. "I'm going to explain it to your mother. Come." She pulled him along, walking towards the exit.

"Let go!" He yelled, shaking off Mikasa's grasp. "It's okay, man." He addad in a calmer tone, letting a deep sigh escape his lips. "But how did you manage to waste so many products… on a few cookies?"

"A few…" She once again lowered her head, hiding her hands behind her back. "I thought you were hungry after working so hard."

"Huh?" He laughed out loud. "You are really something." Giggling at her work was not a good idea at all. He wouldn't understand small things as baking cookies for him made her day a special one.

"Eren, don't laugh. I spent all the day making these. For you and Armin—"

"Is Armin coming over?" He tilted his head with a smile, not letting his friend finish her sentence. "Well then, I'm leaving the cookies to him. But thanks anyway." He passed off the gloomy girl, waving his hand without saying anything further.

Mikasa's eyes focused on Eren's back, building a fist. "Wait." She muttered quietly despite the fact he had already gone.

Before Eren knew it the sun had already sunken, only thin traces of orange-reddish clouds still keeping the skies smoulder. He shivered as a sudden chilly breeze blew against his chest. He stuffed his hands in the cozy pockets of the itchy pullover his mother forced him to wear and paced with slow steps towards the bus stop. It wouldn't make any sense to return to the bakery - Mikasa had wasted all the products and they were about to close soon anyway. Deepening his cold hands a little bit further caused him to almost furl his upper body. "Fucking cold." He cursed quietly with a dry voice.

He needed about 20 minutes from Mikasa's house to the bus stop and as he finally reached the station he found himself surrounded by darkness. He was used to it anyway - never being able to go home in the daylight. He let out a sigh as he rested on a bench. Stretching out his legs, a loud and clear yawn escaped his lips.

"Noisy."

"Wua!" Eren winced at the sound of someone's voice. He jerked his head to the left- to the right over and over again - studying the surroundings. But there was nobody. He layed a hand on his forehead, brushing through his hair. "Hah-hah-a…Am I hearing voices now?" He laughed nervously, gulping afterwards.

"The only thing I hear is your voice."

Eren heard the voice coming from beneath the bench and quickly jumped off, causing him to fall on the ground, his bottom sticking out. "Wu-wuaaaaah!" He screamed, desperately trying to crawl away.

"I should be the one screaming after seeing your ass from close up." The annoyed voice resounded through the darkness once again.

"W-Who are you?" Eren stammered as he finally turned around, narrowing his eyes. It was way too dark to identify the person.

"I don't think that matters, really." The strange figure crawled out, stretching his arms. "This is awful. How did I end up down here?" He muttered, disgustedly patting away the dirt from his jacket.

"How the fuck should I know? How is that even possible without being on drugs or something?" The surprised boy barked loudly.

"This makes sense." The man nodded as acknowledgement, finally facing the younger person. "Do you want some?"

"Do I want some what, asshole?" Eren pushed himself up with bare hands, unintentionally imitating the other by patting off the dirt from his clothes.

The stranger scouted the taller boy before his eyes. "I guess you are over 18, right? Do you want some drugs, I mean." He stuffed his hands in his pockets.

Eren gasped at the question, not believing what this dude was trying to pull off. "Are you serious?"

"Do I look like someone who tries to be a funny short man?"

"Uhm - let me think for a moment. Yes, you do." Eren smiled, sticking out his head as a hint how much taller he was.

"Watch your tongue, piece of shi—"

The person was interrupted by jarring, loud police sirens. His deprecating eyes suddenly widened, obviously being affected by the disturbing noises.

"You never saw me." He commanded, turning away. As he was just about to start running, he felt a hand grab him by the jacket.

"Uhm - let this piece of shit think for a moment. He did." Eren smiled nastily, holding tight onto the piece of cloth.

"Let go, you spoiled piece of trash, or you're going to regret it." He warned him calmly.

"Let me regret it then, funny short man." He closed his eyes, widening the smile.

"At your service." The man kicked Eren's right leg, pulled his arm and dragged him along as he started running in rapid speed.


End file.
